WhatsApp, Messenger to allow messages from 3rd-party services in EU

New Delhi: Meta has announced plans to allow third-party services in WhatsApp and Messenger for users in the European Union, who will soon be able to put messages in the same inbox as third-party chats or keep them separate.

Under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), Meta is making major changes to WhatsApp and Messenger to enable interoperability with third-party messaging services.

“We’ll continue to build new features including expanding to groups in 2025 and calling in the 2027,” said the company.

As required by the DMA, people using WhatsApp and Messenger in Europe have the option to connect with people using third-party messaging services that have chosen to make their apps interoperable.

“We call this third-party chats. after six months of building new features, creating a new user experience, and getting feedback from potential partners and other stakeholders, we wanted to share an update on what third-party chats will look like on WhatsApp and Messenger,” said the social media company in an update.

As a result, the company has built new notifications into WhatsApp and Messenger that inform users about third-party chats.

“We will remind users each time a new third-party messaging app becomes available. We have also designed a simple onboarding flow for users where they can learn more about third-party chats and turn the feature on,” said Meta.

Options include choosing which third-party apps they want to receive messages from, and how they would like to manage their inbox.

Meta will offer the option to either have third-party messages delivered into a separate folder, or users can decide on a combined inbox that shows all messages in the same place.

“Users can always change their mind and change this setting at any point,” it added. The company said it will also provide rich messaging features such as reactions, direct replies, typing indicators and read receipts.

“In accordance with the DMA, in 2025 we will include the option to create groups, and voice/video calling in 2027,” said Meta.